Wehrung v. Ideal School District No. 10

Ideal School District No. 10 (defendant) of Watford City, North Dakota, held a school-bond election. The school bond needed 66 2/3 percent approval to pass. The bond passed by a narrow margin. Seven taxpayers, including Howard Wehrung (collectively, the disgruntled taxpayers) (plaintiffs), contested the election, claiming that a portion of the votes were cast illegally. The disgruntled taxpayers sued in state court, seeking injunctive relief and a declaration that the election was null and void because nonresidents had voted in the election. The disgruntled taxpayers challenged the votes of 12 voters. At trial, the judge found two of the voters to be disqualified and required them to disclose the content of their votes. The disgruntled taxpayers argued that the remaining 10 contested voters were not residents of Watford City but were residents of a nearby city, Arnegard, where they worked. The school district asserted that those 10 voters only had temporary work in Arnegard and that their legal residences remained in Watford City, where they owned property, intended to return, and exclusively voted. The court determined that the 10 other contested voters were Watford City residents and were qualified to vote. The court then sustained the election results. The disgruntled taxpayers appealed to the state supreme court.